The cost of hiring a private investigator in Florida generally falls between $350 and $1,500 for most flat-rate reports, and $145 per hour for surveillance and field work, with a four-hour minimum. Research, analysis, and due diligence work is billed at $350 per hour, also with a four-hour minimum. Complex financial investigations — bank searches, brokerage searches, and full asset investigations — run from $1,495 to $9,500. Nearly every case begins with a retainer, and that retainer is applied directly to the work performed.
That is the short answer. The longer answer matters more, because what you actually pay depends on what you need, how quickly you need it, and how much information you already have in hand. A skip trace on a debtor who moved across town is a fundamentally different assignment than three days of surveillance on a spouse in Fort Lauderdale or a multi-jurisdiction asset search on a business partner who may be hiding money offshore.
Crossroads Investigations is a licensed private investigation agency headquartered in Miami, Florida, serving clients throughout Miami-Dade County, Broward County, Palm Beach County, and the rest of the state — with national and international capability when a case crosses state lines or borders. The pricing below reflects the firm’s published rates, and every figure on this page is drawn from the full investigation rates sheet.
Private Investigator Hourly Rate in Florida
Not all investigative work is billed the same way. Understanding which category your case falls into is the fastest way to estimate your total cost.
Surveillance and Field Work
Surveillance is billed hourly because time in the field is the product. The current hourly rate structure is:
- $145 per hour, per investigator, plus $0.70 per mile, plus tax
- $135 per hour for assignments exceeding 20 hours
- Four-hour minimum per investigator, per day
- $500 rush fee for assignments that must begin within 24 hours
- $500 cancellation fee if a scheduled assignment is canceled within 24 hours
The hourly rate includes travel time, a written investigative report, and all video and photographic media collected. That last point matters when comparing quotes — a low advertised hourly rate that excludes travel, reporting, and media delivery is not actually a lower cost.
Surveillance covers infidelity investigations, insurance and workers’ compensation claims, criminal and accident matters, workplace conduct, child custody documentation, and witness interviews. More detail on scope and methodology is available on the surveillance investigations page.
Research, Analysis, and Due Diligence
Analytical work is billed at $350 per hour with a four-hour minimum. This rate applies to due diligence reporting, complex corporate research, and heir identification where the heirs have not yet been named. The premium over field rates reflects who performs the work: the analytical team at Crossroads Investigations is composed of former Central Intelligence Agency officers, and the firm is owned and operated by a former federal intelligence officer with service in the CIA, the White House National Security Council, and the U.S. Department of State.
A typical due diligence engagement examines litigation history, political activity, reputation, press and blog coverage, associated corporations, SEC filings, enhanced criminal and civil records, and social media. Executive summaries commonly run a few dozen pages and are supported by hundreds of pages of appendices.
Flat-Rate Pricing: What Common Investigations Actually Cost
Many of the most frequently requested services are not billed hourly at all. Flat-rate pricing removes the uncertainty of an open meter and lets you know your cost before authorizing the work.
Background and Locate Services
- National Background and Hard Asset Report — $500
- Employee and tenant screening reports — $75 and up
- Basic Locate / skip trace — $350 (charged only if new information is found)
- Advanced Locate — $750
- Employment Locate with last-quarter wages — $995
- Heir search — $1,400 and up
- Trace a phone number, license plate, or VIN — $350 and up
Financial and Asset Investigations
- Bank account search — $1,495 per person or company
- Brokerage and retirement account search — $1,495
- Reverse bank search — $1,000 per account
- Peer-to-peer financial search (Zelle, Venmo, CashApp, PayPal) — $500 per person
- Cryptocurrency account search — $3,500 per person
- Deceased asset search — $3,000 per person
- International bank search — $5,000 per country
- Complete Asset Search package — $9,500, covering one person plus up to six associated entities
The Complete Asset Search is worth singling out. Purchased à la carte, the components would total roughly $20,940 — the bundled price represents savings of more than 50 percent. Details on scope and requirements are on the asset searches page.
Research and Specialty Reports
- Social media report across 15+ platforms — $1,195
- Dating app search (Tinder, Bumble, Hinge, OkCupid, Grindr) — $750
- Life insurance policy search — $1,500 per person
- Auto or homeowners insurance policy search — $500 per person
- Government document retrieval — $350 plus court and postage fees
- Jury pool vetting — $9,500 per day for up to 100 prospective jurors
- TSCM bug sweeps — $800 for a vehicle, phone, or computer; $1,750–$3,000 for residential properties by size
How the Retainer Works
A retainer is an advance payment that funds the investigation and is drawn down as work is performed. It is not a separate fee layered on top of your case cost — it is your case cost, paid up front.
- For hourly assignments, the retainer typically covers the estimated hours plus anticipated expenses such as mileage and records fees.
- For flat-rate reports, the retainer equals the quoted price of the report.
- The authorized budget will not be exceeded without client approval, except where additional expense is incurred while actively following a subject or securing information critical to the assignment.
- Rush assignments — any case that must begin within 48 hours — carry a non-refundable retainer, because pending work is placed on hold to accommodate the start date.
- Unused retainer funds on hourly matters are reconciled against actual time and expenses.
The engagement begins through the retainer and intake form, which captures case details, subject information, and the scope you are authorizing.
What Drives the Cost of Hiring a Private Investigator Up or Down
Two clients requesting “a background check” can receive very different quotes. These are the variables that move the number:
- How much you already know. A full name, date of birth, Social Security number, or last known address shortens the work. Missing a Social Security number on a financial search adds a $275 location fee.
- Type of case. Database-driven reports are efficient and priced flat. Field surveillance consumes investigator hours in real time and is priced accordingly.
- Geography. Work concentrated in Miami-Dade and Broward counties keeps mileage and travel time low. Assignments in Palm Beach County, Orlando, Tampa, Jacksonville, or out of state add travel expense, and jury vetting outside South Florida includes reimbursable travel.
- Jurisdictional surcharges. Subjects who have lived in New York within the past seven years carry a $125 surcharge due to premium state record fees.
- Urgency. Rush work priced within 24 to 48 hours carries a $500 fee and a non-refundable retainer.
- Subject evasiveness. A person actively avoiding process servers or creditors may require escalation from a basic locate to an advanced locate, and possibly discreet field inquiry.
- International scope. Cross-border work engages foreign agents and is quoted case by case.
Who Hires Crossroads Investigations
The client base is broader than most people assume, and the majority of assignments originate in South Florida.
- Attorneys and law firms — litigation support, judgment enforcement, pre-suit asset verification, jury consulting, and witness location for civil and family matters throughout Miami-Dade and Broward.
- Insurance carriers and defense counsel — claim surveillance, workers’ compensation investigations, and insurance fraud documentation.
- Employers and property managers — FCRA-compliant employee and tenant screening reports and workplace misconduct investigations.
- Businesses and investors — partner vetting, merger and acquisition due diligence, and counterparty research before capital is committed.
- Families and individuals — infidelity concerns, elder abuse suspicions, adoption and surrogacy background work, nanny vetting, wellness checks, and locating estranged relatives.
- Estate and probate professionals — heir searches and deceased asset investigations.
- Hospitals and care managers — next-of-kin location for incapacitated patients.
Common Scenarios That Warrant an Investigation
- A Miami business owner holds a judgment and needs to know whether the debtor has recoverable assets before spending more on collection.
- A spouse in Broward County suspects infidelity and needs lawful, documented evidence rather than speculation before filing.
- A divorce attorney believes the opposing party is concealing bank, brokerage, or cryptocurrency holdings.
- A landlord wants a screening report on an applicant whose employment history does not add up.
- An investor is days from wiring funds to a partner whose corporate history has never been independently verified.
- A family suspects an elderly relative is being financially exploited by a caregiver.
- A creditor or process server has hit a dead end on a subject who has moved without a forwarding address.
- A company suspects a listening device has been placed in an executive office or vehicle.
The Investigation Process, Step by Step
- Consultation. You describe the situation and the decision you are trying to make. A scope is recommended, and unnecessary services are steered away from — surveillance, for example, is most cost-effective when there is a specific suspected time and place rather than an open-ended watch.
- Written quote and scope. You receive the applicable flat rate or an hourly estimate with a projected budget.
- Retainer and authorization. The intake form is completed, the retainer is paid, and the authorized budget is set in writing.
- Investigation. Licensed investigators and former intelligence analysts execute the work using restricted databases, open-source intelligence, public records, and lawful field methods.
- Reporting. You receive a written report with supporting media, documentation, and chain-of-custody records where applicable.
- Follow-up. Findings are reviewed with you, and next steps — deeper searches, balance updates, or coordination with your attorney — are recommended only where they are justified.
Turnaround varies by service: screening reports in two to three business days, background reports in two, insurance and employment locates in seven, and bank or brokerage searches in roughly four weeks.
Pricing Protections Worth Knowing About
- No new information, no fee on locates. A Basic Locate Report is billed at $350 only if it produces information you did not already have. Send what you have; if nothing can be added, the fee is waived.
- No contingency billing on asset work. Asset searches are flat-rate because of the effort involved, which means no percentage of recovery is claimed.
- Volume relief on surveillance. The hourly rate drops from $145 to $135 once an assignment exceeds 20 hours.
- Bundled savings. The Complete Asset Search package prices at less than half of its component services.
Licensing, Legality, and Why It Affects Price
Florida regulates private investigation under Chapter 493 of the Florida Statutes. Crossroads Investigations maintains an “A” Agency License, an “MA” Agency Manager’s License, and a “C” Private Investigator License through the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and carries full insurance coverage.
Licensing is a cost factor because it defines what may lawfully be done. Cell phone pinging, telephone record retrieval, and pretexting financial institutions are not legal and are not performed. Bank searches are conducted under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act using public records analysis, payment-processor data, and SWIFT confirmations — never deception. Evidence gathered outside the law is worthless in a Florida courtroom, and an unlicensed operator exposes you to liability. Additional detail on methodology and legal boundaries is covered in the frequently asked questions.
Frequently Asked Questions About Private Investigator Cost
What is the average cost to hire a private investigator in Miami? Most individual assignments land between $350 and $1,500. Surveillance averages $580 for a four-hour minimum day at $145 per hour plus mileage. Complex financial investigations run higher.
Do I have to pay a retainer up front? Yes. All work begins with a retainer, which is applied to the cost of the investigation rather than charged in addition to it.
Is there a minimum charge? Field work and analytical work both carry a four-hour minimum per investigator, per day. Flat-rate reports have no minimum beyond the report price.
What if the investigation finds nothing? On locate and skip trace work, the fee is waived if no new information is developed. Other services are billed for the search performed, since the effort is expended regardless of outcome.
Can I get a firm quote before committing? Yes. Flat-rate services are quoted exactly. Hourly matters receive a written estimate and an authorized budget cap.
Does the hourly rate include expenses? Mileage is billed separately at $0.70 per mile, plus applicable tax. Travel time, written reports, and media are included in the hourly rate.
Getting an Accurate Number for Your Case
Published rates answer the general question. Your case deserves a specific answer, and that requires a short conversation about what you know, what you need to prove, and what decision hangs on the outcome. Frequently the most valuable part of that conversation is being told that a less expensive service will accomplish the goal — a $350 locate instead of $750 of advanced research, or a $500 background report instead of hourly surveillance that may sit idle.
Crossroads Investigations has been named the top investigation firm in South Florida by readers of the Daily Business Review for seven consecutive years, operates from Miami with lines in Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Orlando, Tampa, and Jacksonville, and handles matters nationally and internationally. The full menu of investigative services spans surveillance, background investigations, skip traces and locate reports, bank and asset searches, due diligence, jury vetting, bug sweeps, and international investigations.
Review the complete rate sheet, learn more about the firm and its team, or contact Crossroads Investigations to discuss your case confidentially and receive a precise quote. Consultations are private, and the information you share is protected from the first call forward.
Rates listed reflect published pricing and are subject to change. Case-specific quotes are provided in writing prior to engagement.
